Maine Democrats advance baseline budget without Republican input

Mar. 20—AUGUSTA — Democrats on Thursday moved to use their majorities in the House and Senate to push through a continuing services budget without Republican support.

Democratic lawmakers argued that passing an $11.3 billion two-year budget and avoiding possible partisan gridlock would ensure state funds are available July 1 and provide certainty to municipal and school officials as they draft their budgets for the next fiscal year. It does not include any of the tax increases or cuts proposed by Gov. Janet Mills, they said.

But Republicans accused the majority party of cutting them out of the process, effectively silencing the voices of their constituents. They also criticized the budget bill as not being balanced because it does not include more than $100 million in anticipated MaineCare costs in fiscal 2027.

Rep. Drew Gattine, D-Westbrook, said municipal officials need to have faith that lawmakers will fully fund public education, municipal revenue sharing and other programs, especially given the uncertainty created by the new Trump administration, whose policies on tariffs and moves to eliminate swaths of the federal workforce are stoking fears of a recession.

“These are unstable and uncertain times, but this bill provides some stability to our communities and to our constituents,” said Gattine, who co-chairs the budget-writing committee.

Rep. Mark Blier, R-Standish, blasted Democrats for not giving Republicans a chance to pass a bipartisan two-year budget, noting that House Republicans supported the emergency supplemental budget after winning a concession on General Assistance.

Blier, who serves on the budget committee, said they were only given a few hours to read through the 400-page budget bill before voting Thursday, and accused Democrats of supporting a budget that spends more money than it has in revenues. He predicted Democrats would return with another budget change package that increases taxes to make up the difference.

“The money’s got to come from someplace,” Blier said, with his voice rising. “And we’re going to find it either through taxing the population and they’re already overtaxed. … We are not the only people suffering from inflation. The people of Maine are suffering from inflation and what do we do? We’re taxing them more.”

The budget passed in a preliminary vote, 74-67. Additional votes in each chamber are needed before being sent to Mills.

The move to pass a majority budget comes after a partisan impasse over the smaller, supplemental budget to balance the budget in the current fiscal year. That impasse raised fears of a possible state government shutdown in July if lawmakers fail to reach a bipartisan compromise on a new two-budget plan in the coming weeks.

A budget passed later in the session would need the support of both parties to qualify as an emergency bill and take effect in time for the start of the next fiscal year July 1.

A budget passed without two-thirds support in both chambers would mean funding doesn’t become available until 90 days after adjournment. That means Democrats have until the end of the month to pass the baseline budget, adjourn and then come back in a special session to finish their work, a maneuver they’ve used in the prior two budgets.

The budget being advanced by Democrats also includes the $121 million supplemental budget, which is needed to close out the current budget ending June 30. Most of that spending — $118 million — is being used to close a deficit in the state’s Medicaid program, known as MaineCare, and $2 million is devoted to protect Maine’s forests from spruce budworms.

Democrats say their baseline budget for the next two years is intended to “keep the lights on,” while lawmakers work toward a bipartisan Part II budget, which would contain new spending and other policy changes. They say the budget doesn’t include any of the tax increases originally proposed by Mills to preserve existing programs, including free community college, free school lunches, providing 55% funding for public education and maintaining 5% of revenue sharing.

According to the state budget office, the budget includes $11.32 billion in spending and leaves $129 million in revenue for a “Part II” budget. But the spending plan does not include over $100 million in anticipated MaineCare costs for fiscal 2027, including reimbursements for health care providers.

The Department of Administrative and Financial Services “understands the additional funding needed for FY27 would be addressed in a future appropriations bill,” department spokesperson Sharon Huntley said.

The Democrats announced that they would pass a majority budget last week after Senate Republicans blocked passage of the supplemental budget despite Democratic concessions to place limits on using General Assistance for housing, add cost-of-living increases for direct care workers, and launch a third-party audit of the MaineCare program to look for waste, fraud and abuse, among other things.

Failure to pass an emergency supplemental budget with Republican support has put health care providers, particularly in rural areas, in a tough spot financially, according to officials. The state has already begun curtailing payments to MaineCare providers until the budget is passed and takes effect.

General Assistance limits are not included in the budget being taken up by House Democrats, but it does include the 1.95% COLA for direct care workers.

Senate Republicans also wanted to institute work requirements and freeze enrollment for able-bodied MaineCare recipients, but Democrats opposed those proposals, citing a lack of public hearings.

Senate Republicans blocked the supplemental budget even though it was endorsed unanimously by the Appropriations and Financial Affairs Committee, which is made up of eight Democrats and five Republicans. But Rep. Ken Fredette, R-Newport, wasn’t at the meeting and later raised an objection, which led to widespread Republican opposition.

House Republicans offered 17 floor amendments, seeking to place restrictions on who receives free community college tuition, requiring state workers to pay into the new paid family and medical leave program, defunding abortion services through MaineCare, blocking funding for offshore wind, limiting General Assistance to U.S. citizens and limiting housing assistance to three months in a two year period.

Rep. Laurel Libby, R-Auburn, offered 10 amendments, including efforts to eliminate the state income tax, the paid family and medical leave program and state renewable energy goals, among others. Libby, however, has been unable to speak or vote on the House floor after being censured for a social media post about a transgender high school athlete.

Libby was able to announce her amendments, but not speak to them. Under House rules, Libby could regain that ability by apologizing, but she has refused to do so.

All of the amendments were defeated by Democrats in party-line votes.

This story will be updated.

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